Why study languages? A better question would be “why wouldn’t I want to study modern languages at university?”

Coming from a German background and having been brought up more-or-less bilingual, I have always found it strange that mainland Europeans have made such an effort to learn foreign languages. Here in Britain we offer a stark contrast as studying modern languages is widely considered to be unnecessary or too difficult and is thus abandoned by secondary school students as soon as possible. I never realised that this would lead to my friends asking me why I was capitalising nouns in my German essay or why I pronounce Cologne weirdly (because it’s pronounced “Köln”, whether you like it or not).

Cologne, Germany. Sorry about that, Max: Köln.

This is what drove me to appreciate just how enlightening languages can be. By learning how to speak in another tongue you develop an understanding of an entirely new world. While others are content living in their native country, those who study modern languages could quite comfortably live in two or three! One of my most driving motivations has to be the pursuit of this lifestyle; to reach the calibre of a person able to adapt to almost any culture. Of the people in my life, the most interesting and (on my part) idolised have been the individuals who have travelled and picked up new language along the way. I see being able to speak a foreign language as a sign of strong character, intelligence and broad horizons.

However, my motivations are not simply a romanticised dream. I understand that UK employers and the global job market see modern languages as a valuable transferable skill which reliably makes hardworking, determined employees. When I was 14 I travelled to Germany by myself and worked in a graphic design studio as part of my work experience. My view at the time was that it would

Max is right! Why wouldn’t you want to study modern languages at the University of Reading?

show I was an adaptable worker who was confident in his language abilities. I can safely say that this view hasn’t changed and I now wish to study modern languages at university to make me stand out in Britain’s current job market. I thoroughly enjoyed my time working abroad as it allowed me to forget my native culture and embrace that of a new and vibrant nation. Everything, from the 20 minute commute to conversing with customers, felt natural and sparked a surprisingly strong feeling of wanting to stay just a few more weeks.

Ultimately, it is my ambition to study modern languages at university as I believe it will enhance almost every aspect of my life. I see mastering a foreign language as a key to innumerable new walks of life and may offer inspiration to others to study languages as well. After all, why wouldn’t they want to study modern languages?

There were so many great entries this year that our committee had a hard time choosing a winner.

Here’s an excellent submission from our runner-up, Emily Beckett.

I began to learn Italian as my second modern foreign language at GCSE. Instantly the language felt natural which ultimately led me to wanting to study it at university. This interest and passion for Italian was reflected in my GCSE result. Following this success at GCSE I went on to study Italian at “A” level. During the past two years this passion has developed into learning not only more about the language but also about the culture, traditions and history of the Italian nation.

I want to continue my study of the Italian language at University because I’m interested and excited for the new skills that it will allow me to acquire. Along with developing my communication skills, which will be a valuable asset when applying for jobs in today’s increasingly international working environment, it will enhance my fluency making me a more confident and independent Italian speaker. I would also like to further my study of Italian at University because I want to advance and mature my knowledge and understanding of not only the Italian language but the English as well. I feel the additional language will make me even more aware of my native language therefore helping me improve my general communication.

In addition, I think that learning a foreign language challenges your brain in ways which other subjects cannot as it requires you to comprehend the rules, structure and differences of the language. Studying a language at university will allow me to grow and mature as a learner.

Furthermore, learning a modern language will open up a world of opportunities for me. In the foreseeable future I wish to travel and explore the world with my language therefore having such a high level of fluency will not limit the boundaries I wish to explore. Likewise if I decide to move abroad after University the additional language will make it possible for me to integrate into the community with ease and experience the true local culture.

Finally, if we are to aspire to become a truly multi-cultural nation then I believe we should all aspire to learn a modern foreign language. We now live in a global and ever shrinking society and learning about the life and cultures from beyond our shores is crucial.

At University of Reading Open Days, the Department of Modern Languages and European Studies invites all our visitors to submit entries for a Blog Post Competition. This year’s topic was “Why study languages?”

The winning entry came from Meili Ellison. Congratulations to Meili.

Here’s what she wrote:

For me, choosing to study languages at university was the easiest, most obvious decision I’ve had to make in a long time. I’ve always had a passion to experience new cultures, travel as much as I can, and be in new far away locations (or “Fernweh” as the Germans call it). Speaking the language of a country -or attempting to- shows respect to the people you meet, and gives us the opportunity to live down the “English people are lazy at speaking other languages” stereotype!

Being born abroad in Hong Kong and living in China for the first part of my life is where my curiosity for other countries and cultures stems from. It gave me a taste for adventure overseas that I have never lost. Rubbing shoulders with people of all different backgrounds and beliefs ignited an enduring interest and inspired me to learn and experience as much as I could! Many of our family friends had international backgrounds, and as I grew up I learnt that those with languages had the richest experiences and the most success at work and in life.

Not only are languages interesting and useful in day to day situations, but in our increasingly globalised commercial world, they set you apart from the crowd. They open doors in the struggle for scarce jobs and put you in a strong position for employment. Employers know that language speakers have to be determined and intellectually strong, to tackle what they know to be a demanding and testing subject. Above all, speaking a foreign language places you on the international market, potentially giving you the opportunity to live and work abroad. What more could you want?

Last year I spent some time in Vienna working for a renowned Viennese company. Demmers Teehaus, on the Christmas Market (Christkindlmarkt) at Schönbrunn Palace. Here I had the opportunity to converse in German with the locals, in English and pidgin French with the tourists, and even was able to pick up a few words of Japanese from some visitors. From then on, whenever a Japanese person came to my stall, I greeted them in their own language, which definitely caught them by surprise! Seeing the joy it brought to them, and how grateful they were to see someone attempting to speak Japanese to them so far from home, gave me pleasure and really inspired me.

With speaking languages comes patience and respect. After experiencing at first hand how difficult it can be working and living in a foreign country and speaking another language, I respect people who have moved to Britain for the job opportunities much more. I will never look down on someone because his language skills are not perfect as I know how much effort it takes to learn a foreign language myself.

I truly believe that languages are an invaluable gift, a skill for life, and a joy forever.